Monday, December 17, 2012

Holiday Drink Ideas

Ah...the holiday season- a constant stream of holiday parties, eating, being surrounded by your entire family, stress...it's like being trapped in a wedding that last a month in a half. But lest you come down with a serious case of bah-humbugs*, there are some upsides- mainly, cookies, presents and best of all cocktails. Odds are you have to attend at least one (if not a slew of) holiday fête(s) this year. Instead of trying to avoid your relatives by hiding the bathroom, try playing bartender and test out a recipe from one of the books below:

Using
beer to make cocktails is a great way to lighten up a drink and give it
an interesting edge. This book has lots of great beer cocktails for
the holiday season. The Maru (p.33) seems like a safe bet for a holiday
brunch with it's mixture of blackberries, St. Germain liqueur and
Sappora. The Lager Grog (p.28) looks like a fine drink for a cold night
with Sam Adams Boston Lager, apple cider, sherry and cloves. Finally,
for something fancy, the Belgian 75 (p.45) is a twist on the French 75,
with Belgian pale ale standing in for Champagne.

Just
because your party starts before noon, it doesn't mean you can't have a
cocktail. This book is full of light drink recipes including mimosas,
Bellinis and other brunch favorites. For those of you who like your
drink to double as a meal, there is a whole chapter on Bloody Marys.
I'm not a huge fan of coffee in my cocktail, but the Café Brûlot
Diabolique (p. 30) looks intriguing with its notes of cinnamon and
clove. The Lady Germain cocktail (p.79) is a fun twist on the classic
St. Germain cocktail, with the addition of strawberries and gin. Le
Perroquest (p. 80) is a sophisticated version of the mimosa with a dash
of Campari and gin. Finally, it's not clear to me if the Smoked
Martinez (p.139) with it's bacon-infused gin and maple syrup would be
delicious or disgusting, but it certainly would be a conversation
starter.

Dr. Cocktail: 50 Spirited Infusions to Stimulate the Body and Mind by Alex Ott.
Call No.: 641.874 OTTFind it in the catalog!

Do
you want a cocktail that also has curative qualities? Check out this
book by chemist, mixologist and "master alchemist" Alex Ott. Several of
the recipes come with lists of the "active" ingredients in the
cocktail. The drinks are organized by the mood they create (i.e.
"aphrodisiacs and magic tinctures," "memory-evoking elixirs") or the
conditions (i.e. ""anti-stress cocktails and mental health elixirs.")
For a lighter holiday drink, check out the Fountain of Youth (p. 77)
which combines white cranberry juice with cucumbers and gin. A good
drink for reminiscing over holidays past is the appropriately titled
Xmas (p.148) which has clementines, gingerbread spice and clementine
vodka in it. Finally, a good party fix-it and forget-it drink is the
Rembrandt sangria (p. 174)- a combination of tequila, pinot grigrio (or
merlot) and cranberry juice infused with hibiscus tea.

Love margaritas, but don't find yourself satisfied by the run of the mill, pre-made mix variety? This book is perfect for you. There are lots of fancy, impressive margarita (and mezcal cocktails) here, as long as you don't mind infusing your tequila or making your own margarita mix. Bayless even has a section on seasonal cocktails that make it easy to plan for your holiday parties. Stand out recipes include a Tangerine Spice Margarita (p. 29-30) and a Sparkling Ginger Margarita (p. 39-40).

If your family and friends are pretty straightforward drinkers, this book will likely go over there heads. However, if you want to impress your cocktail nerd friends, this is the book to do that. There are plenty of drink infusions and obscure liquors that are sure to impress even the most seasoned (and snobby) drinker. Good holiday drink recipes include: a Cranberry Cobbler (p.97) with simple syrup made with macerated cranberries, Hot Butterred Pisco (p. 144-5) is a combination of two common winter drinks: irish coffee and hot buttered rum, an Apple Daiquiri (p. 51) is a classy alternative of appletini fans, Vieux Carré (p. 262) is a pretty classic cocktail with a warming combo of rye whiskey and cognac. Finally for fans of sparkling drinks, there is a Framboise Fizz (p. 124) with tequila, crème de cacao and Fraimboise Belgian ale.

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Here is where we highlight the various things (books, resources, websites, pop culture, etc.) that we think are cool and other people should check out. It’s sort of like the nerdy librarian version of GOOP or O! Magazine. You are welcome to think of us as heftier, less famous Gwenyth Paltrows; but we prefer to be thought of as younger, thinner Oprahs.